


Selcouth: Miraculous International Agency AU

by Tan_Legend



Series: Miraculous International Agency Au: Ostentatious Occasions Updates [1]
Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Agent AU, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Chloé Bourgeois Redemption, F/M, that no one asked for
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-26
Updated: 2020-12-31
Packaged: 2021-03-10 23:07:25
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Graphic Depictions Of Violence, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 15,998
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28335123
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Tan_Legend/pseuds/Tan_Legend
Summary: Welcome to the world of MIA (Miraculous International Agency). We have:Devils with diabolical dealsAngels with faux graceAgents, Spies and AssassinsMediocre Miraculous powersExcerpt:Chloe’s clear blue eyes widened till they were as large as planets. They sought to look past the man beside her. At the same time her hands extended towards him, latching onto his dark green suit’s sleeve. His green eyes flashed as he turned to face her, she could sense the snarky remark coming to life in his throat only to be die when he saw the look on her face.A loud, ‘Get down!’ tore out of Chloe’s mouth as she tugged him to her small frame and activated her miraculous. She pulled him down and the both of them fell, he squished underneath her, just in time for the world around them to burst into cement and flame.------------(The Chloe redemption Au packed in a world with agents, spies and assassins that no one asked me specifically for, but I shall give it to you anyways)
Relationships: Chloé Bourgeois & Félix Graham De Vanily, Chloé Bourgeois/Félix Graham de Vanily, Félix Graham de Vanily & Lila Rossi
Series: Miraculous International Agency Au: Ostentatious Occasions Updates [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2075049
Comments: 3
Kudos: 4





	1. Ch 1: To lie in wait

**Author's Note:**

> Christmas special because it was just lying not-so-forgotten in my files.  
> You can choose to ship Chloe and Felix or not. Their relationship can be comradery or friendship or love, your choice. But that won't make either canon in this Au. It'll be left ambiguous.  
> (Beware of mild swearing)

* * *

**Selcouth (n.)**

**When everything feels strange and different; unusual**

**Rarely known**

**Chloe’s clear blue eyes widened till they were as large as planets.** They sought to look past the man beside her. At the same time her hands extended towards him, latching onto his dark green suit’s sleeve. His green eyes flashed as he turned to face her, she could sense the snarky remark coming to life in his throat only to be die when he saw the look on her face.

A loud, ‘Get down!’ tore out of Chloe’s mouth as she tugged him to her small frame and activated her miraculous. She pulled him down and the both of them fell, he squished underneath her, just in time for the world around them to burst into cement and flame.

**8 hours ago…**

**Chloe stepped out of the car with only one bag in her hand. It had everything she would need for the next twenty four hours.**

Her sky-blue eyes took in the sight of the huge house in front of her, it looked more like a mansion than anything else. Its magnificence showed just how wealthy the man that lived in it was. Definitely _at least_ Gabriel Agreste level rich.

The feeling of being underdressed took over her. She looked down at the tips of her shiny black shoes, which was all that could be seen under her warm, yellow coat. Both were top notch brands and quiet fashionable, but they weren’t high couture. They were made for comfortability and handiness, not for appraisal and fashion. This was the type of clothing her job required her to wear at times and over the years Chloe had learnt to deal with it. There was always time to show off when she was on vacation or off duty, her salary gave her more than enough to live a life of splendour.

The blonde woman made her way up the steps and the butler met her at the threshold.

“I’m Heathcliff, madam.”, he said in French. “The Master has asked me to immediately take you to his study upon your arrival.”

Chloe nodded and the butler led the way. Her critical eye noticed everything in every rooms and halls she passed. Her first thoughts were of how none of the servants were around so as to maintain secrecy over just who was visiting. She noticed how dust gathered and that it wasn’t just that the servants had been told to stay away but that there weren’t so many in the first place. She noticed how the mansion had this air of solitude that reminded her of her best friend Adrien’s house.

Truly, the Agreste and Graham De Vanily men were very similar.

When they finally reached the second floor the butler requested for permission to enter.

“Come in.”, came the reply.

The butler opened the door and Chloe entered the study alone. It was large and ridiculously spacious for a room only one person would be using. The person in question was staring at the city beyond the large glass walls of his room when she entered. He turned to greet her, or rather, say the most degrading thing he could while posing to be a perfect gentleman. She looked into his eyes and he looked into hers with a raised eyebrow. Then his lips pulled into a mischievous grin and she swore she could hear the mocking tone in his words before he even spoke.

“Oh my, I hadn’t expected you of all people to actually manage to pass. Congratulations!”, then he clapped three shorts claps. “The Academy must be allowing people of lower marks to pass to boost morale, either that or, it’s starting to degrade in quality!”

The Academy was the institution connected with the agency that she worked for. Miraculous International Agency: It was a top secret government agency that scouted for people to wield jewels of power know as Miraculous. Candidates came from all over the world and worked hard to earn these Miraculous. Once they graduated they were inducted into the Agency as agents, spies and other professionals.

Chloe was an agent and her Miraculous was that of Subjugation: The Miraculous of the Bee. Many criticised the Agency for allowing her to wield it. It wasn’t an unknown fact amongst the Agency and its associates that she had barely managed to pass her second year exam and the only person in history, to almost fail the last year exam. People were weeded out with every year but the last year exam guaranteed success, because all that were left were the best of the best. To almost fail that meant that she wasn’t worthy of being an Agent. 

Chloe’s change in demeanour was as new as a couple of years. It all started after the second year exam.

Hearing the words of the man in front of her she tried to keep her lips sealed tight, not willing to give him the satisfaction of seeing her pissed. His smile and the utter glee in his eyes made her realised she had failed and she cursed herself for not keeping her glare in check. Ah well, if she’d let her anger slip out why not show it freely?

“Trust me when I say I didn’t want to see your face and ruin my day, I mean it, Little Vanilla. But Adrikins told me he only trusted me to not dump your sorry ass midway, so I came.”

“Hah, I knew you had a thing for my ass, can’t blame you really, but that’s against our contract isn’t it?”

“Puh-lease, your ass is the last thing I would want in this godforsaken world. All we have to do is our jobs. You do your part of this mission, Little Vanilla, and I’ll do mine.”

“Of course.”

His voice was smooth and gloating, like he had won some kind of competition. His green eyes held this air of superiority that made her want to punch him in the face. His honey-gold locks were more immaculate than hers.

Chloe realised she absolutely loathed Felix Graham De Vanily, his smooth retorts, his smug grin and punch-able face.

She whirled around and walked out, not willing to spend another minute with the suffocating man. She flung the doors wide open and turn left, stalking down the hallways.

“Your room is the other way.”, Felix’s voice came from his study.

Chloe huffed and turned the other way, not sparing Felix even a glance when she went by his study.

When she was at the end of the hall, his laughter came.

“No, sorry I forgot, you’re room is actually towards the left!”

Chloe gritted her teeth and soundlessly stomped back the right way. By the time she had made it to the open doors of Felix’s study her face had been schooled into a bored expression.

“You must be getting old if you’re memory is so weak. You sure you don’t have dementia?”, she quipped and left.

His expression didn’t waver but she could hear his soundless laughter, as she walked away.

**4 hours ago…**

**Chloe Bourgeois was really tired.**

Not the ‘Oh-my-god, I can’t take this any longer’ type of tired or the ‘Oh-Hell, I’m dead tired I want to go to bed’ tired, but the ‘That’s it, I’m done!’ tired. If only she could pummel the cause of her problems to death. The only thing stopping her was how much of her future depended on this one mission: protecting said problem.

Why did her future depend on this mission? Well…she was the newest of her batch to come in the field. Despite the change she went through in the last two years, many higher-ups doubted her capabilities and if she would last in the field long enough. This mission was the last of her trial period missions, if all went well she would finally be officially recognized as an agent and the wielder of the Bee Miraculous; the Miraculous she had an affinity for. It was being ‘loaned’ to her for this mission, the first time she had used it since the initiation ceremony, when the aptitudes of candidates were checked.

She walked with her arm resting in the arm of the man beside her and she tried her hardest to keep as relaxed a she could. Her dark green dress felt like second skin, the silver and black highlighting her skin and sharp blue eyes. Her hair was squashed underneath a neat brown wig that was styled into a classy and elegant braided bun, the Bee Miraculous nestled into the weave. It was a bit of a blow to her pride to hide her golden hair, after all she had maintained it well over so many years, but she had long learnt to let go of certain prides when she started her profession as an agent. Personal attachments of any kind were what caused predictability and predictability was dangerous in her line of work.

Chloe looked at the door her group was nearing, two doormen protected the entrance. Behind her were two bodyguards and in front of her as well, between the two pairs she stood with her arm linked with her mission: Felix Graham De Vanily.

His suit was black and green, a match with hers. Chloe tried to keep her thoughts straight and not strangle the man next to her. Matching clothes was often a thing done between couples. She did not want to even be considered as a love interest for the insufferable man next to her. She didn’t want to touch him, be latched on his arm or act lovey-dovey or flirty with him either, but she didn’t have much of a choice. She snuck a look at the man next to her, hoping to find some semblance of Adrien.

Felix was, appearance-wise, similar to his cousin and her best friend Adrien; so much so that it was often debated as to whether they were twins and not actually cousins. Both had the same light skin, forest-green eyes and honey gold hair. Even their height was more or less the same, with Adrien only two inches taller, but that’s where the similarities stopped.

Unlike his cousin and last name ‘Vanily’, which sounded a lot like vanilla, Felix was not sweet in any sense, in fact, Chloe was sure that the man was as sour and spicy as any relation of Adrien could get. He was like a lemon, extremely so. Even Gabriel didn’t hold a candle to how much Felix agitated her. Chloe was sure she hated the green-eyed man next to her.

If she had the choice, she would have refused the mission, but it had been selected for her to prove herself after an entire year of hard work doing all types of minor missions. She was sure as heck not losing her chance because of a pompous blonde brat. With mortification, she realized her words could have been associated not so long ago.

She couldn’t help it though. The distaste she felt towards Felix was born of a lifelong grudge of him never acknowledging her as a good friend for Adrien, and even when she knew he was right she still couldn’t shake off the feeling of distrust towards the man. Maybe if he had stayed as he had been before his father died her instinct wouldn’t set off like crazy due to him, but boy that was once considered Adrien’s closest confident had grown cruel and hateful.

He was in pain when his father died, and Gabriel was too busy grieving over his comatose wife to let Adrien out of the house. It didn’t help that Felix’s mother wasn’t exactly a role model. Chloe wondered if all Graham De Vanily siblings and cousins had such amazing contrast in behaviour. Where Emelie Agreste was one of the sweetest and kindest woman she’d ever met, Amelie was closer to a chaotic fairie. While Adrien was the sweetest honey one could ever taste, Felix was the sourest lemon of the bunch.

How many times had she actually met him in her life after Emilie went comatose? A total of five or six? And none of those encounters lasted longer than a few minutes. Not even once in their lives had they talked properly, without hostility. They hated each other long before they first spoke. Her, because Adrien had someone he was closer to than her: He, because she was a spoilt brat that was not worthy of Adrien.

Chloe sighed as Felix her away from yet another group and towards the door that would lead them to the ballroom. Their guard had to be left behind while they wiled away time in this room. She blinked when they entered the room. It was every bit of high-class as her younger-self would have loved. The ballroom they had entered was bright and bathed in colours of gold, white and cream. From cream curtains to gold chandeliers, mellow coloured mosaics to porcelain plates rimmed with gold. Chloe forced herself to not stare at the grandeur of the place and instead concentrate on everyone gathered there.

She walked hand in hand with Felix, showing her best attempt of being happy. Everyone was wearing the highest trending clothes and the room was abuzz with people conversing about trade, business, gossip and more. She took a sweep of the entire room with her eyes, grateful for the eye-tech lens she was wearing which immediately identified the few people she couldn’t.

Felix guided her over to a small group to the left and she followed without complaint. The first half of this entire operation was to just goof around with the rest of the sheep. The times of the wolves wasn’t till midnight and their pack would only assemble behind the bright scenes, in the shadows.

**4 Hours ago…**

**Felix Graham de Vanily was suffering.**

He had the opportunity to make fun of _The_ Chloe Bourgeois and wreck her day but he couldn’t. It was the greatest shame of the year. A travesty. Lila would never let him live it down. Ah, why was he giving that green-eyed woman even a second of his thoughts? Maybe because despite her lies and slyness, she had her own type of charm. A cruel sense of mischief that he couldn’t understand and didn’t condone, but a sharp mind and opportunistic soul that he could understand. She was fun to play with. It was cute to see her acting like she controlled all the chess pieces when truthfully, he was the one that commanded the entire board.

But Lila didn’t have a chance against Chloe who had sharper senses, though rusted.

Although he definitely hated the woman with sharp blue eyes, he couldn’t deny she was going to be the only entertainment he was going to get in the first half of their mission. He had realised that the woman had definitely changed and was different from the brat he had known most of his life. It didn’t change the fact that the both of them hated each other though.

Why had he agreed to this? Two reasons and two reasons. Firstly, he would get to trouble Chloe and maybe she would be smart enough to find the loop hole in their contract and retaliate and secondly, because of Adrien Agreste.

Adrien Agreste did many things. Ask serious favours from anyone was the rarest of the many things he did, somewhere between doing things he considered morally wrong and skipping on celebrating his mother’s birthday. So when his cousin called him up to ask him to give Chloe another chance, Felix was torn.

Adrien was one of the few people that meant something to him. His mother, best friends and cousin sister Rachel aside he only ever cared for Adrien. Felix wasn’t someone who let his loved ones down but he also wasn’t someone who changed his ideas or beliefs easily. His grudge against Chloe was something seated deep in his heart. But he’d try for Adrien and so he said yes. _Yes_ with the full intention of letting Chloe show how much she had changed.

That didn’t mean he had to let go of his beliefs about her totally, she couldn’t have done an entire 180. No human was capable of that.

As he led Chloe to a group of people he whispered to her, “Remember we’re supposed to sell it and they’re supposed to buy it.”

He nudged his hand a little and she let it go. He moved to placed it on her waist, pulling her close. A small part of him felt rather appalled at the idea of having to be so close to her but he just focused on the fact that she was suffering as much as, if not more than him.

“I’m not so beneath you that I would flirt with you! I have standards!”, she furiously whispered back. He didn’t see her expression but assumed she was keeping it pleasant.

“Oh, don’t think I want it, Chloe- _kins_.”, he said under his breath loud enough for her to hear.

A second later a pain rose all the way up from his foot to his spine and he growled inaudibly.

“ _You_ may _not_ call me ‘Chloe-kins’. It sound’s utterly ridiculous in your voice.”, the blue eyed woman haughtily whispered.

From the corner of his eye he saw that Chloe had a self-satisfied smirk on her face. He glanced down to see her ridiculously long heels slowly get off his foot, and tried to swallow back his smile. Fortunately, his mission partner was too occupied by her accomplishment to notice him.

By the time he reached where he wanted to, the both were back in character.

“Mr. Felix Graham De Vanily, it’s been long!”, a man in tradition black welcomed them.

Felix gave his most pleasant fake smile to the man. He’d been told it looked even more authentic than his cousin’s model smile. “Monsieur Revedi, what a pleasure to see you again.” _It really wasn’t._ The man was as sweet as milk in front of the masses but an absolute worm behind closed doors.

He felt Chloe relax a little and held back his smirk for the oncoming slaughter.

“And who might this beautiful lady be?”, Monsieur Revedi asked and Chloe gave him her hand to kiss.

“This is Miss Tame. Ms. Lady Tame.”, Felix butt in before Chloe could use whatever name she had prepared.

It was dig at how she wasn’t a lady and was too wild.

Chloe stiffened next to him like an iron board. His inner demon smiled. For a split second, her eyes met his face and he could have sworn he saw fire in them. If not for the gathered crowd he would’ve given her his best smirk, after all, he was just getting started.

“You’ve never brought anyone except for your close friend Miss Bridgette with you. Miss Tame must be someone very _dear_ to you.”, A woman said in a high pitched voice. Her eyes definitely held malicious intent.

Felix’s next move brought both the woman and Chloe pain, and brought him great pleasure.

“Yes, I haven’t known Miss Lady very long but she is someone _very dear_ to me.”

It didn’t matter to him if people started to whisper about this as Lady Tame was not real and Chloe was in disguise. No one would ever be able to connect two and two together. He could have all the fun he wanted and none would be any wiser. At his words Chloe did the impossible, she got even stiffer. Felix was sure she was about to lose control and show her true self but all she did was smile pleasantly, though he could see that it was a bit forced.

“It’s such a pleasure to meet you, dear.”, Monsieur Revedi said.

“Likewise, Monsieur Revedi.”, Chloe said with a smile. Felix talked to the gathered people while Chloe excused herself to check out the punch table. He suspected that she was going there to get a clear view of the room and those gathered in it.

He managed to get away from the gossipy group and mingle with another after a few minutes. When he left his latest group he glance down at his watch and narrowed his eyes. It had been an hour since he last saw the blonde woman with sharp blue eyes. His eyes wandered to where he had seen Chloe vanish long ago. He couldn’t see her anywhere.

“I wonder if you’re getting more stupid as you grow older, Felix, or if your head was screwed wrong onto your shoulders since birth.”, a new voice said the second he excused himself from the group.

Felix turned to meet the famous fashion critic Audrey Bourgeois. She was wearing gold and white, as usual.

“You look like the room decor, Audrey.”, Felix said with a smirk.

“As rude as ever, humph! At least you have fashion sense.”

“Haha, you know I think you’re great, Audrey.”

“What are you and Chloe up to?”

“Chloe? Where? Please don’t tell me she’s here.”, Felix glanced around rather animatedly to showcase his point. At least, that is what it would seem like to any onlookers. His eyes were actually scanning for a certain blonde.

“I’m not an idiot, little Graham.”

“There you go, belittling me. Now I know where Chloe got it from.”

Audrey gave the green-eyed man her best unimpressed stare.

“She’s here on a mission. With me.”

“I know that. Don’t fool around, not with her.”

“Woah, Audery. I’m not into blondes!”, Felix said and mimicked hugging himself out of fear.

Audrey gave him one last glance slamming on her favourite sunglasses, the Dragonfly Miraculous and moving towards the exit, “Be careful tonight. The dark side has something planned.”

Felix adjusted his tie, eyes catching on his sapphire cufflinks, they were the unique shade between green and blue, neither here or there. “I know.”

**3 Hours ago…**

**Chloe was knee deep in trouble.** She exhaled as softly as she could, her fingers felt hard and stiff and she was so numb that she could hardly concentrate. She strained her ears to hear the soft floating voice of Mister Revedi’s accomplice and bit her cracked lip when she failed to hear anything and Revedi started to talk again.

“Graham De Vanily is here He’s most likely after the-”

“What use would the Eagle Miraculous be of to him? He doesn’t even know what it is and what it does. The lady at his arm is quiet peculiar and more threatening on the other hand.”, the second man’s voice was a little louder now and it held a certain accent. Chloe still was putting her all into hearing him and somewhere at the back of her mind, which was slowly freezing, she felt that the voice was familiar. Her Miraculous didn’t better her hearing like Adrien and Luka Couffaine’s did. She did feel a sense of pride that she was being acknowledged as dangerous but it also took away the element of surprise her short stature and femininity gave her.

“Lady Tame? She’s nothing but a passing fancy!”, Revedi said making Chloe grit her teeth. She shivered and blinked back the tears of irritation. Once this mission was successfully over she was going to give Felix a thrashing. Her good name was being sullied by being said along with his. Wait, it was an alias so technically her name wasn’t being sullied. Oh well, she was going to give Felix a thrashing just for the sake of it.

“I’d be careful of her. She’s been blessed by the gods.”, the whisper-like voice of the other man floated in the air and Chloe identified it. It sounded Asian, East Asian specifically. Maybe Chinese? Why was it so familiar? The bitter cold was stopping her from thinking clearly.

And ‘blessed by the gods’? Her? She’d been blessed by the gods? What did that even mean?

“What do you mean?”, Revedi snapped.

Chloe couldn’t hear what was being said by softer-spoken man no matter how much she strained her ears. God damn it! They were talking about her and she didn’t even know what about her they were talking about! Revedi’s next words made her realise she hadn’t missed anything.

“What do you mean it’s none of my business? I’m your benefactor! You’d be nothing without my help!”, Revedi said with a roar.

“Oh please.”, A new voice spoke out. Chloe wouldn’t have realised the third person was present until she heard her. “He would be in even higher places if it weren’t for _you_.”

Clearly the third person present was not fond of Revedi.

“Shut your mouth, you little bitch!”, Revedi screeched and Chloe brought up her hands up to cover her ears. Unfortunately, her clumsy actions made enough noise to attract the attention of the other three.

“Did you hear that?”, Revedi screeched again and Chloe winched.

“It must be a rat dying from hearing your horrible attempt of copying it.”, the woman’s snarky reply came. Apparently, she too found Revedi’s screech irritating enough to insult.

Chloe stiffened and hid her head as gracefully as she could when she saw Revedi’s eyes wander over to where she was. It was taking everything in her to stop the chattering of her teeth.

“Argh, it is unnecessary to spend any more time in your presence, Miss _Volpina_.”, Revedi sneered out the name of the woman and turned to leave.

The woman’s responding laughter was as cold as Chloe’s predicament.

“I’d advise you to leave the magic to the magicians and the prey to the Shadows.”, the man with the Chinese said as parting words.

Chloe didn’t know if Revedi heard it or not, but the man’s words sounded like something to be heeded. If he didn’t hear him then he was truly a fool. There was no doubt that he too was here for the Eagle Miraculous, the question was, who else? Someone or some- _many_ dangerous and associated with the bad side. What else could shadows mean?

There were too many questions in her head that she didn’t know the answers of. The two she was spying on started to talk again.

“It is always nice to see someone of your calibre in our midst and I mean no offense, but don’t you think it was unnecessary to scare away Revedi?”, Volpina- a codename most likely- said in a voice that was the epitome of innocence. Chloe could taste how truly sour the sweet sounding honey was all the way from where she was.

“We don’t need any more eyes on the stage, do we?”, the man asked in a soft voice.

“Hmm...I wonder if I should stay out of it too...”, Volpina clearly wanted something.

“Who do you think is here tonight in search of the Eagle Miraculous, Miss Volpina?”

“Well, I’d say the renowned business man Gabriel Agreste, I know him so well, we’re like this-” Volpina must have shown how close they were with her hands, “but he isn’t here, so I’d say the Marcos, the Jaikumars and..”

Chloe listed every name she heard on the list but she couldn’t quite remember it seconds later. With the number of people Volpina claimed to know….Chloe would have think she made up half of the list if the blonde herself hadn’t seen the mentioned people here today. The last though to come in her mind was that the woman sounded like a liar. _This_ close to Gabriel Agreste, really? That man kept his own son at an arm’s length. Truly, she was finding it hard to concentrate, she glanced at her fingertips and they were almost blue.

She shifted her gaze and silently shuffled until she could see ‘Volpina’ and grit her teeth in annoyance when all she saw was an orange dress with a sweeping back and long brown hair that reached till her hips. Volpina was covering that entirety of the other person from Chloe’s vision.

The door opened rather noisily and Chloe ducked so as to not be seen. One more person entered the room.

“Miss Volpina, it’s time.”, the man said as soon as he reached to where the woman was.

“I see.” Voplina said, “We were having such a wonderful conversation Mister-”

_“Conversation? You were the only one talking!”, Chloe thought._

“-I’d love to chat again some time.”, Volpina continued. Chloe would have rolled her eyes but she felt so cold she couldn’t even manage it.

“Likewise.”, the man said and left. The door hardly made any noise as he left.

“You should disguise yourself again. He shouldn’t find out you’re here.”, Volpina’s acquaintance said. His words were innocent, Volpina’s reply on the other hand was enough to achieve the impossible; make Chloe feel even colder.

“Oh don’t you worry, even if he does he won’t live to care. After all, Felix Graham De Vanily won’t be making it out alive after tonight.”

**2 and a half hours ago…**

**Felix Graham De Vanily finally found Chloe Bourgeois.**

She messaged her location to him just as he passed by the door of the room she was in. He knocked the door and opened it when he didn’t hear a response. He surveyed the room and found the agent. She was lying down on the coach, frozen solid. Felix felt dread gather in his stomach and he hurried over to where she was. There were a lot of things he wanted Chloe to get in trouble for but dying wasn’t one of those things.

“Chloe. Chloe!”, he shook her shoulder. He couldn’t understand his own actions, he should be laughing right now, making some kind of joke about how she looked close to death. Yet, no taunting words came out of his mouth. He truly didn’t want her to be hurt. She was, after all, his cousin’s best friend. Adrien had lost enough people, he wouldn’t be able to live with himself if he saw Adrien broken again.

Chloe’s skin was paler than snow and he could have sworn her fingertips were blue. Her lips were almost purple. She cracked her eyes open and with narrowed slits looked up at him and moved her lips. No sound came out of it. She was close to going into shock. Felix sat down next to her and quickly took off his jacket. He wrapped it around her and pulled her to him. She felt even colder than she looked.

Chloe tried to pull herself away but he held on to her and pulled her closer.

“What happened to you, idiot?”, Felix said.

Chloe didn’t respond but she stopped struggling.

“Just so you know, I would have left your skinny ass to rot away if Adri _kins_ would let me live after that.”, he said.

Chloe’s weak fist hit his chest and he chuckled. Chloe apparently didn’t appreciate the shaking of his body because she hit his arm this time and he actually felt something. He laughed this time and another punch came, stronger than the previous.

“Now, now…do you really want to punch your saviour?”

He felt her head rustle near his chest and he looked down to see her looking up at him with a glare. _Saviour my ass_ , her gaze said. He squashed another bout of laughter but didn’t forget to give her a smirk. Her eyes narrowed further.

“Don’t die or Adrien will kill me.”

Chloe didn’t reply. The both of them sat in silence.

“You d-do know I ne- cough- need water r..right?”, Chloe’s raspy voice broke the silence after some time.

“Right.”, Felix looked to the water at the table. He didn’t trust any water that wasn’t bottled but it should be fine with Chloe, right? What’s the worst that could happen to her when she was the she-devil herself?

“J-just give me t-the water in a glass or a-are you r-reallly that incapa- cough-ble?”, Chloe taunted him.

“If you can be snarky you can definitely get the water yourself.”, Felix told her with a smile.

“A-and I -cough- can definitely throw you a-across the room.”, her voice seemed to be coming back to normal.

Felix was ready to give another weird answer when he heard Adrien’s voice in his head pleading him to be nice for once. He mentally sighed and poured her a glass of water. As he sat across from her he noticed that her skin was back to normal and the tip of her nose was red. She drank the entire cup before sitting back and closing her eyes.

He sat and observed her as her skin turned from pale as snow to light as cream. From what he knew, Miraculouses gave better immunity, faster healing and stronger bodies to their wearers. It also came with certain cons, but the pros usually outweighed them.

Felix looked at his phone where his personal security was asking him for his status and location. He texted back the code word that would tell them he was safe before checking the time and switching off his phone.

“We have time.”, Felix said and Chloe looked at him with one eye open lazily.

“I only need a minute.”, she said in a normal voice.

“Of course you say that after stealing my blazer.”, Felix said.

Chloe gave him an irritated look before throwing the clothing at him. If it hadn’t been his he wouldn’t have reached forward to catch it.

“What happened to you?”, Felix asked.

“I hid in an A.C vent in the private room down the hall.”, she said.

“…”

”…….”

“What?”, Felix wasn’t sure he’d heard her right. She said she hid in an A.C vent.

“I hid in an A.C vent.”, Chloe repeated with the same slow pace as though she was telling it to a toddler.

“You are insane.”, Felix said with a laugh.

That explained a lot. The entire building was air-conditioned and its vents were huge. It was a dangerous thing to stay there for long, she could have caught hypothermia or frostbite. Considering her condition from just a few minutes ago he was surprised she was shrugging it off.

And the damage to her could have been worse, weren’t bug Miraculouses lacking in protection against cold? In fact they definitely made it harder for wielders to function in colder climates and seasons.

“And what bout of insanity gripped your mind with enough force for to you to go into A.C vent? Or did you think it would be fun there?”

“Oh, I thought I’d find some snow fairies there.”, Chloe quipped with an equally fake smile.

Felix blinked and sat back.

“Well, what did you find?”, Felix asked with a smirk, “Snow trolls and Santa Claus?”

Chloe’s eyes narrowed and the irritation in them faded as another feeling replace them. Was it worry? She was worried?

“ I eavesdropped on some people, Monsieur Reverdi and some of his…associates. Someone has planned something. They plan to kill you.”

Felix couldn’t say he was surprised. He fought off the urge to fidget with his tie.

“Oh?”, he smirked, “Colour me surprised!”

“Can you at least pretend to care? This is _your life_ we’re talking about!”

“This isn’t the first time I’ve been targeted.”

“Well then maybe you should be at least weary, because this person really seemed into killing you.”, Chloe was standing now.

“And who might this person be?”

“I don’t know her real name, I couldn’t see her from where I was. All I saw was brown hair. The name she used was ‘Volpina’.”

Ah. _Lila Rossi,_ his partner in crime. Not really, but she was very devious. A true connoisseur of the art of lying. She was a tough opponent to beat. A sly vixen with a tongue as slick as oil and heart as poisoned as cyanide. Of course Chloe and the entirety of the Agency didn’t know of their _friendship_.

 _‘I suppose she’s ready to make her move.’,_ Felix thought.

“Hmm….the name doesn’t ring a bell. It sounds like the ridiculous name of some children’s cartoon.”, Felix said with an amused smile. “Are you sure you didn’t imagine it, Chloe?”

“Can you at least try to be worried?”, Chloe folded her arms. “Though in all honesty, it’d be a boon to society if you would perish slowly and quietly.”

“What would that achieve?”

“Some much needed peace.”

“That’s not happening.”

“What a shame.”, Chloe said and then sighed, “ I know you don’t care that much, but Adrien would. If you can’t care for yourself, care for Adrien. He doesn’t deserve to lose any more people.”

Felix looked into her eyes. For Adrien, he would do it for Adrien,

“Fine. We’ll stay vigilant the entire time we stay here. You stay next to me all the time.”, Chloe opened her mouth to interrupt but Felix cut her off before she could start, “No questioning my decision. We still have a mission. I procure the Eagle Miraculous for you and you in turn protect me. My protection is secondary.”

It most likely didn’t make sense to Chloe why Felix was so adamant that his protection meant less in comparison to the acquirement of the Eagle Miraculous. In her eyes, he was a young man: spoilt, rich and unknowing of the true depth of the Miraculous and those that fought over them. She didn’t know that he was in deeper in this side of the world than she was.

“Of course.”, Chloe said.

He could see the confusion in her eyes. But she was trained to follow orders and hold the missions of the Agency at the highest pedestal. Nothing else should matter.

“Well then, we should leave, it’s about time for the deal to begin, I want to be there as soon as possible.”

“Wait a second. Someone wanting your head isn’t the only complication today. I think there’ll be someone at the deal.”

Felix knew who would be there today. The Shadows wouldn’t pass up this chance. They wouldn’t know him of course, he hadn’t made his debut in the world of Miraculous yet. What worried him was the fact that Chloe didn’t know about the shadow world. She wouldn’t know until she completed her mission successfully and considering she wasn’t going to complete it successfully he couldn’t let her find out.

“What now, Chloe?”

“I heard Revedi talking to someone about suspicious stuff. He left saying he had an appointment and then called some to tell them to arrange a meeting room. I went to it before he arrived, but couldn’t find a proper hiding place, so I panicked and went into the A.C vents.”

Chloe told him everything she had heard from the top. Felix nodded along. Chloe now had an idea of a possible dark side but he couldn’t confirm this.

“So you’re convinced that there is a dark side.”

“Yes.”

“A dark that can what?”

“A dark side that can wield Miraculouses!”

“Do you hear how ridiculous you sound Chloe _kins_?”, Felix mocked her.

“No, I hear a possibility that the both of us might not make it alive. In the case others interfere, on my command we abort mission.”

“You’ll lose your miraculous.”

“That is my sacrifice to make.”

“The world will truly be a safer place.”, Felix said with a smile.

Chloe rolled her eyes at him and pulled him. The both of them left the room without looking back.

**Two hours ago…**

**Chloe would not going to admit how tense she felt.**

Not just because admitting that to the asshole next to her (who was impervious to the entire situation) would mean she’d have to swallow years of pride but also because this really wasn’t the place to complain or admit anything.

She sat in a plush leather arm chair next to Felix, their four body guards on high alert around them. The huge underground auction room smelt slightly musty, even the air vents couldn’t hide how seldom this venue was used. Which told her a lot of things.

Firstly, this place was a new to terrain to many and that would mean there would be certain complication even the ones that wished to steal the Eagle Miraculous or kill Felix would be slowed down by. Secondly, it meant that there were few outlets for air, meaning that getting out of here from any place that isn’t the main doors would be difficult. Thirdly, it meant that this place hadn’t been used much before and the chances of a trap being placed was either unlikely, or the trap would be simplistic enough for her to easily notice or stop.

But Chloe was still on the highest alert she had ever been on a mission. From the black business men and women of the evilest kinds, to the white innocent merchants that gathered with distaste towards their morally wrong counterparts, to the grey and ambiguous Felix beside her; she couldn’t decide which was here to dupe them all.

The Bee Miraculous settled in her wig seemed unusually heavy and she could have sworn it was vibrating and helping her. She couldn’t hear any better than a regular human but she sure as hell could sense every shift, even Felix’s silent as feather finger taping against the armrest.

Her eyes darted when she felt another shift that was much louder than the others and noticed a woman with hair as black as a raven’s being helped up from the floor by a man. A few people tutted and some sent her sympathetic glances but Chloe frowned. There was something vaguely familiar about her. Chloe could sense that’s something was off about her. The air around her was slightly distorted, or was that a trick of the light. Whatever it was, there was smoothing about the woman that Chloe found familiar. A sense of kinship and foreboding.

The tech lens in her left eye wasn’t recognizing the woman either, she was too far away and the lighting wasn’t exactly good. Generally it would have fond out who she was in a second, but out of all the people in the room, the lens wasn’t finding out anything about her. Chloe sent a look towards Felix, and held back her frustration at having to ask him for help.

“Felix.”, Chloe said to draw his attention.  
“Yes, Chloekins?”, Felix said with a mock sweet tone. Like as though he actually held her dear to him in his heart.

“Don’t call me that!”, Chloe said furiously but softly, “How many people do you recognize here?”

Felix slowly scanned the entire room, “Quiet a few.”

“How many exactly?”

“Well, there’s Mr. Sigmund there…and his wife; in the corner is Mrs. Tuskan, her son, her uncle Mr.Boredom; Mr. Fuckface in that corner over there, he has the sharpest mind here but the worst personality ever. If you find yourself with him alone, try to leave if you can’t do that then keep your distance. He doesn’t understand the concept of ‘no’. There’s that bastard, Ronald, stay away from him too. He’s the worst you can get from this shitty cesspool of society. And-”

“Just tell me the number!”, Chloe said mentally making note of what Felix told her. She already knew after reading the files on which people were most expected to be there tonight but if Felix was telling her they were bad, then they were bad. He knew better about high society than she did.

Felix paused and looked around again, his lips hardly moved as he mouthed ever number. “Thirty six.”

“Out of all 45?”, Chloe said before she could stop. Argh, why did she sound impressed? “Well, do you know that woman in with black hair over there?”

Felix looked where she was pointing. The lady almost blended into the darkness with a deep black dress and even darker hair. “No.”

Did he just lie?

Chloe blinked and wondered if she had imagined that light of recognition in his eyes.

“You aren’t lying for fun, are you?”

“And why would I? I wouldn’t get anything out of it. Surely you have a lens that tells all necessary things about all those on its database?”

“She’s not there.”, Chloe said sullenly.

“Must be faulty.”, Felix was dripping with smugness.

“It’s not! There’s something off about her. She could be from the side that uses Miraculouses for bad. Just-”

“She must be no one important if she’s isn’t showing up. It happens sometimes. Can you recognize the man she is with?”

She nodded. He wasn’t as powerful as Felix but certainly not the least rich of all present there.

“Well, she must be his escort.”

That made enough sense to the holder of the bee Miraculous.

“How do you know?”, she asked looking at Felix intently.

“About what Chloe _kins_?”, Felix smirked, “Everything you don’t?”

“About the lens and its information data base.”, Chloe ignored his taunt for once.

“I’ve worked with another Agent before. Her code name was Lady Du Coeur. She didn’t show her face but was very….patient.”

Marinette. He was talking about Marinette. A spy _and_ a hero. She had graduated with top honours. Her official role was to be a Spy, but she had also saved many lives, Chloe’s included. She had been one of the first few that forgave her and help her improve.

“Of course she did..she’s-”

“Ladies and Gents. Welcome to this auction. We apologize for this delay in the event. For inconveniencing you, we gift each of you a gold tusk by the famous sculpture…”, Chloe was cut off by the auctioneer and she let whatever she was about to say float away and dissolve.

“An entire gold tusk?”, she whispered to Felix after a beat. “Isn’t that too much for a…”, she glanced at her watch, “…ten minute delay?”

“The products we’ll be dealing with will rise in value till we’ll be dealing in ten millions. I wouldn’t be surprised if one or two of them rose all the way till billion.”, Felix, “A whole gold tusk per person isn’t just nothing to them but even a way to butter up the customers so that they buy more.”

Chloe looked back at the stage where the man with a huge white beard had started the auctioning of a portrait.

“When is the Eagle Miraculous going to come out?”, Chloe asked.

“Oh, we’ll be here for an hour, at least.”, Felix said with a smirk.

Chloe grumbled under her breath about how ‘utterly ridiculous’ the entire thing was before shifting her gaze back to the woman with black hair.

**2 minuets ago...**

**It took an hour and a half for Chloe to finally realise who she was looking at**. 

If she hadn’t been focusing her entire attention on the woman she doubt she would have noticed, for she had so little to go on since the beginning. There was one moment when the light above her flicker and in the fraction of the second she changed.

Literally.

Instead of a dress as black as her black hair, she wore an orange number that looked like the sunset over a desert. Her midnight black hair changed to a familiar long curtain of brown. Emerald eyes momentarily glinted in an eerie way and then it was all gone. Like a flash of lightning, a trick of the light, a deceiving of the eyes. And then she turned and looked at Chloe and winked.

The woman in black was back in her place, but even that split second of imagination was enough for Chloe.

“And now we present the prize of our auction: The Talon of the Inca King.”, the Auctioneer said.

Chloe got up, ready to fight ‘Volpina’ who was obviously using a Miraculous to deceive everyone. Her pulse beat against her veins erratically and she could have sworn her body was ready to take flight. Felix stood up beside her and she was forced to look at him, she hardly noticed how they weren’t the only ones standing. She faintly heard someone say ask if it the item on display was genuine but all she was seeing was the man that looked so terribly like her best friend Adrien. Except she could noticed how his eyes glimmered with a greed that her Adrien would never have.

Chloe saw too much and at the same time she saw too little. Felix’s hand shifted until he placed it above his tie, as though reminding himself of some presence underneath it. His smile was crooked but pretty and joyful. He was thinking of something pleasant, calculating some scheme. She might have tricked herself into calling him beautiful in that moment.

But something made her look away, a sense of foreboding that chilled her to her bones. She looked to the side and was shocked to see the woman was gone, as though she had been an illusion all along. Chloe's eyes ran across the wall to find the woman in black...no to find Volpina- and she noticed how the shadows moved. Her eyes darted over to the exit, now derived of its guards and security. Everything clicked into place in one second. She cursed her single-mindedness, her stupidity, her lacking observational skills.

In her fear, the Miraculous heightened her senses to the max and she heard the _ticks_. So many she could have cried. Except, she was so used to the danger, to this sense of duty that she only felt her focus narrow to her objectives. In one deep breath, she brought herself back to reality and every emotion in her poured out.

That’s why she heard the ringing of the final bells, the death knell. Satan himself calling her to his land of sins. _Three rapid ticks louder than the rest._

Chloe’s clear blue eyes widened till they were as large as planets **.** They sought to look past the man beside her. At the same time her hands extended towards him, latching onto his dark green suit’s sleeve. His green eyes flashed as he turned to face her, she could sense the snarky remark coming to life in his throat only to be die when he saw the look on her face.

A loud, ‘Get down!’ tore out of Chloe’s mouth as she tugged him to her small frame and activated her miraculous. She pulled him down and the both of them fell, he squished underneath her, just in time for the world around them to burst into cement and flame.

* * *


	2. Ch 2: To take action

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I promised New Years and well...the clock just struck twelve. So here you go.  
> Trigger warning for people that have fallen into wells, dark places and been buried underground.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Note: The Butterfly Miraculous has Power of Coercion. (in this fic/ AU)

**A minute later…**

**To be fair, the world didn’t explode. The ceiling had just been destroyed via dynamite. And it fell down upon unsuspecting mortals with no mercy.**

A chunk of rock hit her nape and Chloe’s world went so white it seared her eyes and numbed her mind. Was it hours or seconds later when the light faded and darkness enveloped her instead? All she could feel was the tonnes of cement and brick weighing down on her back. She wasn’t aware how much time had passed in the darkness, but there was ringing in her ears and her hands felt numb from pain already.

There was the darkness of death around her, a blanket threatening to take her to hell as fast as she breathed. Her heart was beating furiously and her breaths were hot against her face but she felt dizzy. Her head was so light so could have float away but her body felt so heavy she was sure she’d never move again.

Her vision turned white and she was lost.

_When she woke up this time she felt tired, wet, cold and young. She lifted her head up and glanced at the small light above. It was a small circlet of light, of freedom, of places that weren’t scary._

_She sniffled._

_“Mommy!”, she screamed. “Daddy! Adrien!”_

_Her voice was hoarse and wretched. It was crying and broken, it was the voice of a girl no older than six._

_The circular brick wall around her smelt like wet mud and water. How long had she been there, all alone with her knees scratched up, her ribbons tangled in her wet hair and her dress torn and dirty? How long had she been there with only her sobs for company and a light too far to reach? How long had she been close to drowning, only held above the water surface with the will of a child scared of death?_

_She screamed again and her voice doubled back at her louder than she’d ever hoped for it be. It was haunting to hear herself, her pleading. But if it would be loud enough that she’d find some help then she supposed that it would alright. It would be worth it._

_“Is a-anyone there? Please! H-cough- help me!”, she choked out as water waded into her mouth. It was only a little cough, the barest minimum water had made its way down her throat, but she was convinced in that one horrifying second that she was drowning. So she trashed even more and made an even bigger chaos._

_Her mind wandered to the story Felix had recently told her. About how sometimes mermaids would drag down little girls by their hair to the bottom of the sea and turn them into their little dolls. The well was certainly no sea but she was scared enough to fear for her life with every second._

_She screamed out once more in hopes that someone would come and save her._

_“Chloe!”, a voice called out to her in the distance, searching and curious._

_“I’m here!”, Chloe screeched but her voice sounded weak._

_“Chloe, where are you?”, the voice called out and drew nearer._

_Chloe feared that he wouldn’t hear her at all and leave her alone in the dark so she pleaded with all her might. She pleaded and cried and screamed. It left her raw and tired. She felt the strength in her arms start to fade as the last whispers of her torment left her mouth._

_“Chloe!”, the voice said again and made her cry even more. There was a note of panic in his voice as he drew near, and she recognized it. She recognized the care behind it, the sweetness._

_A patch of darkness fell over her and she squinted to see the shadow of a child as old as her._

_Her lungs were getting tired, she could feel it, they didn’t even want to breathe anymore, but that sounded silly. How would she sing if she won’t breathe?_

_“I’m right here.”, he said before turning away to look beyond the walls of the well and loudly scream for help._

_“Adrien…?”, Chloe said weakly before she lost strength and felt herself sink. As her eyes closed and the darkness took over she wondered at how warm the water suddenly felt. It would be safe to let herself sink a little, after all Adrien would save her, wouldn’t he?_

_A scream wrecked the serenity and all she heard was a splash before darkness took its rightful place over her._

Chloe blinked as she woke to darkness. Her magic enhanced suit took most of the brunt of the weight over her, but she could still feel her bones trembling while holding the weight. But if she didn’t endure then she would be crushed.

Buried alive.

She had been buried alive.

There was a weight on her shoulder and a timer on her life and she was all alone.

“Chloe.”, a voice called.

It was so close. It was so far.

“No.”, her voice sounded too loud. The walls were closing in, she couldn’t see. Suddenly, she was wet till her chin, the water was lapping at her cheeks. “No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no-”

“Chloe.”, there was that voice again. It was gentle and close, very close. Then why did it sound so far away?

“No. No. No. Oh Gods no.”, Chloe’s face felt hot and her eyes stung. “I can’t die over here. I can’t die.”

She was dying. She was so sure that she was suffocating. Something new was against her cheek, it didn’t feel as hard as the rest of the things touching her.

“Chloe, calm down. I’m right here.”, the voice was tired. It was Adrien.

“A-Adrien…?”, Chloe stuttered out and suddenly she was back in a dry and dark collapsed building, holding on to her life with everything she had, just like last time.

Last time….when had that ever happened to her? Nearly drowning in a well…it felt too real to be a nightmare. A suppressed memory then? So painful her young mind had chosen to lock it away forever?

“I’m afraid not.”, Adrien’s voice spoke out. “It’s Felix.”

“Felix.”, Chloe said, testing the name on her tongue as though it was something new.

“Yeah.”, the soft thing against her cheek moved. His hand.

Somehow, just him being there gave her strength. The fact that she wasn’t alone was enough to make her willing to get up and try again.

She breathed out again and her next few words were whispered, “Don’t worry. I’m getting us out of here.”

There was silence as she shifted and a pain wrecked her head. She groaned and almost cried. Her abilities spanned agility, dexterity, aerobics, superior healing and endurance. Muscle strength and defence weren’t the strong points of her Miraculous.

Her knees were about to bend but she stayed resilient. She closed her eyes and concentrated on the weight above her. She heard her younger self scream and flinched and opened her eyes, but the word was bathed in the same darkness as when her eyes had been closed. So she concentrated again and realised that the weight on top of her wasn’t just an entire floor but a pillar as well.

The surface was close yet so far. The weight should have been nothing, but it just felt more despairing. If only she was stronger.

Her head touched a bar of cement above her and the trauma of her six year old self resurfaced. Her heart beat picked up again and she felt her ragged breaths rattle her lungs. She couldn’t stop the whimper of fear and pain from leaving her mouth.

Felix’s hand was cupping her face again when she finally got some semblance of herself together. She belatedly noticed that his hand wasn’t bare like it had been when the upper floor had collapsed on top of them, it was covered in some leather-like materiel.

“Chloekins.”, his tone was anything but snarky and mock-like. The word was meant to annoy her, the tone meant to calm her; and Chloe hated that she admitted to herself that it worked. That she felt at ease.

“What is it?’, She winced when her voice came out sharper than intended.

“We’re going to have to wait for help to arrive.”, Felix replied. His voice was calm, maybe he was too tired to be hurt by her tone.

“Help? What help? Our bodyguards are most likely in worse conditions than us, with any misfortune, they’re most likely dead. From what I know, the entire ceiling of the hall was destroyed, only those that knew about it in advance would have been able to escape unscathed. Like Volpina.”, Chloe’s voice came out angrier than it should have. But in times like this one could either be scared or angry. She’d chose anger any day. It was better than wallowing in self-pity and the never-ending hole of her new trauma. “You have your phone right? Switch on your light.”

Instead of doing as she said, Felix sighed and shifted. She couldn’t see anything in the dark but could feel a lot, like all her senses were on high alert.

“H-hey! What are you-”

“Shh.”, Felix said and straightened himself in front of her.

She felt him move and tried to think of how he was adjusting himself. Was he preparing to stand? Just to take out his phone?

“It would be best if you fell asleep.”, His voice was different. She couldn’t say how.

“What? Do you want the entire fucking building on top of us to come down and crush us? How do you think it will stay upright with me asleep you dolt?”, Chloe said furiously.

“Right now, you’re staying awake on the will to preserve us both, right?”, Felix didn’t bother answering. His voice was back to normal.

Chloe was in half a mind to let the building collapse on them as long as she got to strangle him first. Instead she focused on breathing trying to stave off the memories of her almost drowning in the darkness.

“Yes, Felix.”, she said through gritted teeth, “Making sure that the both of us survive for Adrien is all that’s stopping me from letting the rubble crush you and your skinny ass.”

“Good.”, Felix said.

Chloe had been feeling on edge the entire time, but his calmness and weird questions finally put her over the edge. What was he getting at? Before she could question further, Felix’s hands cupped her cheeks.

“Wh-”

“Listen to me, Chloe. You’re really tired. You’re really sleepy. Right now you would like nothing more than to pass out.”, Felix’s voice was smooth and soft. It was mesmerising.

Chloe felt herself relax and let calm down. What was she supposed to be thinking about right now? Right...nothing except for sleep, sleep in this cold, dark-

Chloe snapped like a rubber string that had been pulled to the very limit and then been released. Something was really wrong, Felix was being weird.

Her skin was a wreck of goose-bumps, she shivered. She felt something for Felix. Kinship.

Kinship? Why did she feel that? What was Felix doing? But she was too exhausted and felt herself close her eyes. A blanket of peace was slowly staring to wrap around her. She just wanted to rest and forget everything that happened that day.

“Felix-”, she tried one last time, only to be cut off by her own yawn.

“Chloe, why don’t you go sleep? Wouldn’t that be so nice?”, Felix said in the same voice as before.

The blonde woman sighed in bliss. She took one breath before letting go and slumping into Felix’s arms. In the moments between consciousness and sleep, everything becomes clear. With the worry pushed to the back of her head and her trauma not disturbing her inner peace, Chloe realised quite a lot of things. As her sub-consciousness took over, Chloe slapped herself for not seeing everything so clearly.

She could have easily gotten them both out if she hadn’t been busy hyperventilating, she would have figured out a way. She could have noticed the differences in how Felix behaved. The indifference about the dark side, the knowledge about Miraculouses, the feeling of familiarity. The power he had….Felix had a Miraculous. A powerful one. She smiled as she the last bits of her awareness slipped into sleep, it seems that she had failed her mission.

Darkness welcomed her one last time.

**20 minutes later…**

**Felix was swift.**

**He pulled Chloe to him within seconds and punched the rubble that followed her at the same time.**

The cement and metal pipes burst away as power gathered around his arm and pushed away the falling weight. Light rushed into his eyes with the power of a waterfall.

He clinched his eyes shut and supressed a groan. The Green eyed man staggered a little before lifting up Chloe and surveying his surroundings. There was an entire army of men in suits around them, no doubt getting a good view of them, staring at the two open mouthed. They were obviously Revedi’s men, each had a brooch of gold on their personal. Was Revedi the one who had planned on destroying the Ceiling? No, it couldn’t be. That must have been the work of the Shadow holders, the destruction and chaos was much more their style.

The Bee Miraculous still worked but Felix could sense that it was slowly losing power. Though the jewel did not hide Chloe’s identity with a mask, it made her face and stature forgettable, none would be able to remember it.

Felix could hear the sounds of chaos upstairs. Good, as long as there was chaos it meant the Shadow Holders would be here and that ultimately meant the Eagle Miraculous was still here.

The armed men turned to him with their guns ready to shoot. A man was speaking to him but Felix knew there was no choice of answering questions or letting himself be captured.

It would take power and speed to escape the destroyed auction room unscathed. Speed he did not have and power that was running out.

“You all want to take a break.”, Felix said in his most charming voice, putting as much power in his skill as he could. “You want to ignore me and leave me alone for ten minutes. Maybe even forget about me.”

All the men lowered their arms and one even started to hum.

Felix didn’t waste time to walk through the crowd of armed men.

His eyes took in the destruction before finally looking at the stage where a part of him hoped the Eagle Miraculous had been left untouched. But he couldn’t feel its presence at all, and his arms were already starting to ache.

“Geez Chloe, you could have laid off on those parfaits.”, He muttered under his breath to the unconscious woman. “You should be grateful I’m saving your ass again…not that you remember the first time… or even this time...” the last parts were bitter.

Felix looked at Chloe one more time and recalled her breakdown from mere minuets ago, maybe she did remember. Her breakdown in the wreckage couldn’t have just been from the shock of the event. No, it was definitely trauma. Her memories had chosen to resurface at the worst time possible. Felix couldn’t help feeling pity for the woman with golden hair.

As he walked he came past a mirror like wall panelling and saw himself for the third time that week.

 _“Three times a week, Little Graham? You’re turning into more of an idiot the longer you hold on to that Butterfly Miraculous.”,_ he heard Audrey Bourgeois disapprove his actions.

 _‘Give me a break.’_ , he thought to himself rather than her imaginary voice in his head.

His eyes shifted to his look in the mirror. He wore a tux of charcoal black which covered his entire frame perfectly and weirdly enough, was very comfortable to walk around it. The fabric of his tux was not only protective against sharp objects and heat, but also protected him against bullets. His face was covered by some black mask that also covered his head, hiding his hair. The only break in his mask was the sleek butterfly shaped glass over his eyes.

He truly looked like a villain, suave and dark. Except for his stature, it would be hard to find some kind of physical description about him.

He walked out of what was left of the underground auction room without wasting another moment.

After he was back on the main level he entered a room he laid Chloe on a coach just as her Miraculous decided she was safe enough and de-transformed her. The jewels were weird in a sense they lacked life but were perfectly capable of accommodating for it. A feeling of warmth rose in his chest and he allowed it to stay.

“You’ve changed.”, Felix said to her sleeping form, “Not much but enough. I’ll admit, I was jealous you, you always got to spend more time with Adrien.”

He sighed and pressed the small gold circle that served as his cufflink. This odd bit to his suit was a gift from Audrey, a means to communicate with her while transformed.

“What is it, Little Graham?”, Audrey didn’t bother with pleasantries when she responded.

Normally, Felix would have mocked her with pleasantries but now he was short on time, “Who’s fighting against the Shadow Holders?”

“Revedi, that rat, is putting on a hideous display of a fight.”, Audrey said plainly.

“I’m coming to help.”

“He has guns and you haven’t fully recharged from the last time you used the Butterfly Miraculous. You used it again without allowing it to recharge like the idiot you are.”

“You’re too sharp for me, Audrey.”, Felix said with a small smile.

“Make sure my daughter stays safe.”, the woman said before cutting off the connection from her end.

Felix allowed his hand to drop and gazed at Chloe one more time. He didn’t know when she’d wake up. In his panic he put too much power into his persuasion. With the strain on her body and mind, it was most likely that she would stay asleep for a long time.

He de-transformed pulled out his phone and dialled a number.

“Robert, report to me now.”, he barked into his phone.

A few minutes later a man in a grey suit entered the room. His grey eyes took in everything in the room. He was Felix’s best bodyguard, a one man army with unparalleled skill in guns.

“We’ll talk about you’re lacking procurement information about today later.”, The blonde man said with a frown, “Keep an eye on Chloe. If it comes to its worst, abort mission and take her with you.”

“Where will you be going, sir?”, Robert said taking stand beside Chloe.

“To complete my mission.”, Felix said before existing the room with a gun in hand. For some reason, it felt painful to leave.

**35 minutes later…**

**_Chloe was coughing out water from her lungs when the fading sunlight poured into her eyes_ **

_Adrien stood close by, perfectly dry. His face showed that he was clearly wrought with worry and he kept glancing at her and a little way to her right as though he wasn’t sure who he worried for more. Only her mother and father were close to her, claiming she needed space to breath._

_In all honesty, the blonde girl didn’t care. In her mind, she was still stuck in the well that was close by. Her towel hardly felt like it could protect her and she feared some monster would pull her back into the well._

_Her eyes blurred with tears but she looked to the side where a dripping Felix stood with a scowl on his face while his mother dried him and his father patted his head with affection._

_“You were so brave Felix.”, his father said and his mother agreed._

_Chloe’s father turned to thank them many times and they humbly said that it was their son’s duty. Chloe felt that she should thank Felix too. After all, he was the one that saved her, but she was too tired maybe she’d do it later. She looked to her left and saw the well one last time, she could feel the air in her lungs disappear and her body went cold. Her pulse throbbed in her wrists and all of a sudden the land underneath her had turned to water._

_She closed her eyes and didn’t open them again, letting voices of worry and anguish swarm around her as she laid her head against the wet grass and fell asleep._

_When she woke up again, she didn’t remember the previous day, and no one tried to contradict her when she said it was her birthday._

“Felix you dolt.”, Chloe muttered as soon as she regained consciousness. Her head felt heavy with sleep and she wasn’t quite ready to move her body, but somehow she managed.

For a moment she laid down staring at the bright ceiling with no recollection of what had happened the day before. She wasn’t prepared for the memories to wreck her head seconds later.

She groaned and closed her eyes, ready to go back to sleep, but another memory broke to the surface for her to clearly see. This one was a few days old and she could have sworn she was living that scene right that moment.

_“Please Chloe. You’re the only one I trust that would guard his back if anything goes South.”, Adrien had said, twisting the ring around his finger, a habit to show when he was nervous, worried or afraid._

‘ _Okay, Adrien.’,_ Chloe thought. _‘I’m doing this for you and the sake of my mission. Even though he’s fully capable of taking care of himself with that Miraculous he has. It’s ridiculous. Utterly Ridiculous.’_

She opened her eyes again and sat up, glaring at the ceiling as though it was the cause of all her problem. If looks had power, it would have been ashes by now.

When she got up, she noticed a man sitting near the door, far from her, yet close by. He was staring at her with piercing grey eyes and the woman felt intimidated enough to swallow her saliva.

“You’re Felix’s main Bodyguard aren’t you? Robert, right? The one in charge of his security system?”, Chloe asked, recalling where the man felt familiar from.

“Yes.”, he said.

“Where is Felix?”

“Somewhere within this building.”

Felix was still here and they hadn’t left that could only mean one thing, The Eagle Miraculous was still in the building and it was still possible to get it.

“Why are you here?”

“Master Felix told me to keep you safe.”, Robert said.

Chloe was confused.

If Felix had a Miraculous, which he wasn’t supposed to have, that made him an unidentified user. Which in turn would make him a holder from the dark side and that would mean he was her enemy. But then, he was in the hall as well when the ceiling was destroyed. Did that mean the dark side wanted to get rid of him, or were they sure that he would make it out? But that would make it unnecessary for him to stay there, if she died then it would be a bonus for him.

No, Felix wasn’t evil. A pain in the ass, an occasional tyrant. But evil? No, Felix wasn’t with the dark side.

He was a neutral. That was the likeliest scenario. He sided with neither or maybe even both the MIA and the Dark Side.

“Will you follow me if I were to leave the room?”, Chloe didn’t bother asking ‘if’ she could leave the room. She was getting out and completing her mission no matter what.

“Yes.”, Robert said with the same monotony as his previous answers.

That was a con. She couldn’t transform in front of him and she needed the boost of her Miraculous to safely navigate the dangers ahead. Her opponents were ready to bury at least 50 people alive and she could hear gunshots, they definitely wouldn’t hesitate to hurt her.

“What will it do to get you to leave me?”, Chloe asked.

Robert blinked and didn’t answer. Obviously he wasn’t going to leave no matter what.

Chloe sighed and got up and hid behind a curtain, giving Robert a glare to stay put. She opened her purse and took out the golden earpiece hidden at the base of her lipstick. She powered it on and counted till three.

“HQ, this is Cadet Queen Bee.”, Chloe said after three seconds. She was a cadet until she completed today’s mission.

“Cadet Queen Bee, this is Head quarter. Control Service being given by Pegasus. What is your status report?”, she recognized Max’s voice. Pegasus was his code name. Like her, he was an agent but he preferred and was regularly in the tech department.

“An unprecedented attack on the auction house. A third side is interfering today. Eagle Miraculous is at large. I am preparing to investigate the extent of damage and procure the Eagle Miraculous.”, Chloe said. This was her first mission to go down South, though there were always certain factors that weren’t included and later messed up her calculations. “Requesting Back-Up.”

There was silence as Max gathered his information, “Nearest Back-up is two hours away.”

“I can do with that.”, Chloe said. She really couldn’t but nothing else could be done. The nearest base was in England.

“Very well, Back-Up will be ready in two hours. Will you still be proceeding with the mission?”

“Yes.”

“Ch- Cadet Queen Bee, that is dangerous.”

“Our work is dangerous.”, Chloe responded.

She heard Max sigh, “Stay safe, would you?”

She couldn’t have felt more grateful. The fact that Max was worried for her warmed her heart. It was another sign that she had repented and righted her wrongs, “Of course.”, she said and disconnected her call.

She took a few seconds to focus before moving out of her shelter in the curtains and walking to the door.

“Well come on then.”, She said to the man in grey, “Let’s go help your master.”

Robert got up and stood behind her and she opened the door only to see a man in a black tuxedo point a gun to her forehead. She whipped around and closed the door. The man on the other side started to bang the door and she pushed her entire weight against it to keep it from opening.

Robert looked at her, unimpressed and she bit back an insult. “You don’t have a gun handy do you? Mine is in my purse.”

**55 minutes later…**

**Felix was not having the time of his life.**

Audrey wasn’t being helpful at all. He cursed himself for not seeing that Lila would have the Shadow holders strike that night, Of course she would, she saw an opportunity she could not pass up.

He winced as a bullet grazed past his sleeve, leaving a small tear in the green suit. His back was protected by a pillar that was taking the brunt of the forces after him. The sound of bullets hitting cement rang in his ears and he timed the staccato to try and find some pattern he could recognize. There was the sound of empty clicking and he took it as his opportunity.

Without wasting a second he brought up the gun in his hand and shot at the third man from the left.

He heard a grunt and shout of pain as the man clutched his wounded hand and fell backwards. A sense of satisfaction warmed in the businessman’s stomach as he realised his shot had been aimed true.

 _‘No murder.’ Audrey had warned him the first time he’d gone on a mission. He’d rolled his eyes and took the gun._ Obviously he was no murderer then, he wouldn’t become one now.

But sometimes it was a pain to value life so much, like when another bullet grazed his dusty suit. He bit a yelp when he felt the sting of the bullet grazing his skin.

It was hard to believe that while he was fighting for his life, people were obliviously partying in some places. He could have been among them as well, except he loathed ignorance and lying to oneself.

“Audrey.”, Felix whispered fiercely into his earpiece.

“What is it, Little Graham.”, Audrey grunted daintily. She didn’t bother to hide her irritation.

“I need some help.”, Felix conceded.

The was silence except for the sound of Audrey’s breathing and the faint echoes of gunshots that paralleled to the barrage hitting the pillar he had his back against.

“Well, I’m indisposed as of right now. They knew exactly how many of us would be here. It doesn’t help that you didn’t see this coming or that Revedi would interfere.”, the fashion critic said.

Felix bit back a retort, “Would it really be so bad if we let them take the Eagle Miraculous?”

“Either you are slowly losing your mind or you have hit your head and forgotten everything I have ever told you.”

“What is it with you and claiming that something has happened with my head?”

“Little Graham. The power of the Eagle Miraculous is to boost. Boost dreams, luck, chances and even the powers of other Miraculous. If the Shadow holders acquire it, then they shall be able to strengthen themselves-”

“-And if the Agency gets it, they might abuse its power as well. They have evil higher ups, blah blah blah, blah blah blah, blah blah blah.”, Felix said and took another shot. It hit teh man on his shoulder and he convulsed and fell.

He heard Audrey take one at the same time.

Audrey ignored his antics as usual and continued, “If we get, we can hide it or use it to bring balance to both sides.”

Felix snorted, “I have no interest in that Audrey. I want revenge for my father.”

“Which you will get.”, Audrey said and disconnected the call.

For a while, Felix stood in the shadows with nothing but a grim look on his face, and the simpering glow of anger and hatred hidden in his eyes. Then he took in a breath and unleashed a series of well-aimed bullets. All three of them hit their marks and all he had to show for it was a scratch against his cheek.

He stepped past the groaning men and made his across the marble tiled floor. His footstep were the only sound on the entire floor. Everyone was gathering on the second and 1st floors. The other few were closed off. Felix had found it hard to sneak upstairs.

He made his way to the stairs and started walking to the rooftop, where he could sense the Eagle Miraculous still was. There was no-one guarding the terrace floor when he made it till the huge doors leading to the open floor. There was a body at the foot of the stairs, blood still seeping from the multiple wounds in its chest and a gun still in his hand.

Felix wouldn’t have taken the dead man’s gun, the model was too bulky and heavy for his taste and shooting style, but he was running out of bullets for his preferred model and he didn’t want to end up in a corner because he was too picky to save his life.

He tucked his gun into the hidden holder in his tuxedo and shifted the door to check whether there was anyone on the other side of the door. To his surprise, there wasn’t anyone.

He quickly opened the door and navigated the huge terrace with its unnecessary walls. When he came across a third dead-end, it finally came to him that he was wasting time.

A maze.

The rooftop was a maze.

“Fuck.”, He swore. No wonder the Shadow Holders hadn’t bothered to guard the door. It would take ages for anyone to make it through the maze.

This left him at an impasse. If he transformed then any other Miraculous holders would notice, especially since he was the only other person one the rooftop that wasn’t with Revedi or the Shadow holders. His face was covered in a little blood and soot, but still recognisable. He couldn’t be outed as a Miraculous holder and thus he set to make his way through the maze. Swearing when the first turn he took led him to his forth dead-end.

**~*~**

Felix finally made it through the maze, only to have a gun pressed to his forehead. He blinked and noticed a woman with Black hair and black dress smiling at him with her gun in hand. He was tired enough to not have to fake falling on his butt and having to kneel. It was certainly more comfortable than standing.

“Felix Graham De Vanily, it’s a pleasure to finally meet you.”, she purred.

Behind her were eight guards with their guns trained on him, and even further was eth body of a man. Revedi.

The woman in black looked at him like he was a prey, like she had triumphed.

He knew who she was. Volpina also known as Lila Rossi. This illusion was her favourite of all and he’d researched it and its origins. But he wasn’t supposed to know that, he wasn’t supposed to know about Miraculouses either, so he pretended to be a flirty, aloof drunkard.

“And who am I having the pleasure of acquainting myself with?”, he forced his eyes to roam over her body like any seduced, drunk man would. He could appreciate the body, but not who it belonged to or the one borrowing its countenance. He would have preferred Chloe to this. Why Chloe? He couldn’t really tell.

Volpina almost cackled, “Why, I’m no one at all. But you…you are dangerous.” She lowered the gun and pulled up her free hand and from it dangled a talon with carvings, tied to a leather string that looped around her delicate fingers. “Do you know what this is?”

“A decorative necklace given by-”, Felix was cut off before he could spout whatever he remembered from Audrey’s files.

“No, you know something else about this. Its power. Why else would you be at the auction?”, Volpina prompted.

“Lady said she wanted it.”, Felix lied with conviction.

“Who?”, Volpina’s forehead wrinkled.

“The woman I’m _besotted_ with, as my friends say.”, Felix didn’t feel quite so bad saying that. “I don’t really mind being besotted with her.”

“What about your friend…who was it? Ah yes, Lila Rossi. What about her?”

“She’d a good friend.”, Felix was putting his all into his acting, lest Lila see through it.

“I see.”, Volpina was clearly displeased. Felix didn’t try to fool himself into believing it was because she wanted his love. All she wanted, was for him to be wrapped around her finger. “Well, you’ve obviously seen too much.”

She was ready to get rid of him already? Maybe he should have lied that he liked her. Then again, the Chloe had said Lila had laughed while talking of his death.

The woman in black started to raise her gun, “Die quietly would you?”

Felix got ready to transform, the suit would give him extra protection. As he tapped into the power source of his brooch, he realised that its energy was too low. He would have to charge it himself, a dangerous endeavour that had resulted in many deaths when done wrong.

The sound of a bullet leaving its gun resounded in the air and Felix’s eyes widened as Volpina shrieked and stepped back, dropping the Eagle Miraculous and her gun both of which were followed by a few drops of blood.

**1 hour 20 minutes later…**

**Chloe had fake-cried, lied, fought and snuck her way past dozens of overly concerned Parisians, bodyguards that stopped her at every floor and gun-wielding assailants in the occasional room or hallway, she’d even made it through a maze intact.**

After scouring two floor and not finding a trace of the Eagle Miraculous, she had finally concluded that it was on the rooftop and had climbed one more flight of stairs with barely concealed frustration.

Shooting a bullet at the woman who had winked at her before watching an entire ceiling collapse on her was not difficult in her agitated state of mind. She felt a sense of satisfaction when the woman shrieked and jumped away with a bullet hole wrecking her fingers.

Queen Bee jumped and landed next to Felix. Her coat was black with dull gold interspersed in its weave. The inside was a dusty gold that glimmered black as the light changed. Underneath her super-coat was a simple turtleneck and black pants with a belt that looped her waist at a slanted angle.

By the time she reached Felix’s side, Volpina had vanished.

“How were you expecting to escape death with a gun aimed at you point blank, idiot?”, Chloe grouched when she stood beside the kneeling Felix.

  
“I wanted the near death experience.”, Felix said with a smirk, “Wanted to reminisce all those sweet memories.”

“You’re asking for a one way ticket to hell.”, Queen Bee said.

“Where’s Robert?”

“Somewhere in the maze, knocked out. I couldn’t transform with him around.”, Queen Bee said defensively.

“I’m never leaving my men with you ever again.”, Felix said.

“Shut up.”

Queen Bee turned to look at all the gathered men that were slowly progressing towards the two blondes. She noticed the Helicopter whirring to life at the far end of the rooftop, Volpina must be preparing to leave.

“Go in the maze and stay put. I’m going to stop these guys and get the Eagle Miraculous from Volpina.”

“Wait, the Eagle Miraculous-”

“Not now Felix. We can makes jokes about it later.”, Chloe dismissed him, “Right now I want to beat up some people and make them pay.”

She cracked her knuckles and ran for the advancing gunmen. All of them looked at her in confusion, most likely trying to figure out why an unarmed woman was running into shooting range. When she was within range they tried to shoot her only for her to cover half the distance between in a burst of speed.

Queen Bee grinned in excitement. Her first time using the miraculous and she already knew she couldn’t be parted from it. It felt absolutely natural to speed up so suddenly with one more burst she was between all of the gunmen.

At that moment she knew she could use her power. She gathered the warmth in her chest and let it out with a simple incantation.

“Petrify!”, she whispered into the night.

A circle of gold etched itself into ground, reaching till the very last armed man. Symbols of all kinds glimmered in the circle, making designs of all kinds. From its periphery, a wall of golden light rose up and encompassed all those within it. Then, with a flicker, it was gone as though it had never been there.

Queen Bee was left standing amongst statues of flesh. She cracked her knuckles and hit all the men on spots that would hurt them a lot and the next round of hits knocked them out.

Then she ran for the Helicopter that was ready to take off, passing the corpse of Revedi on the way. She lamented his death in the way one laments loss of life. A fleeting feeling of sadness. He tried to steal the Eagle Miraculous, but ended up dead instead.

“Volpina!”, Chloe raged as she neared the transport.

She stopped at its base where the woman in black still stood.

“What should I call you? Drab queen?”, Volpina sneered as Queen Bee neared her.

“You’re not getting away tonight. Give me the Eagle Miraculous.”, Queen Bee said. She couldn’t sense the Miraculous. Most likely because it was in the possession of Volpina, who was actively using her Miraculous and thus hiding the trace of the other.

Volpina laughed and then disappeared. “I don’t have it. Maybe you should ask your companion Felix.”

“Your lies won’t work on me.”, Queen Bee said and looked around for any sign of Volpina.

She was hiding behind an illusion but there had to be something that couldn’t trick her eyes, something that Volpina couldn’t alter. The Helicopter got louder and she could hear it’s fans spinning faster.

“So you claim to know me.”, Volpina let out another mocking laugh.

“I claim to know you lie and deceive.”, Queen Bee said.

In that moment she realised that if Volpina was anywhere near her, then she could be petrified and her illusion would most likely fall.

She called upon her power one more time, not bothering to use its name. The same golden circle as before appeared but when it was gone the Helicopter was hovering nearby and there was no Volpina around. Instead, the woman in black was standing in her helicopter, smugly looking down at Queen Bee.

She hadn’t used her illusions to try and fight Queen Bee, but to escape instead. Queen Bee had foolishly allowed herself to be tricked.

“Toodles.”, Volpina sang as the helicopter took her away.

“Damn it!”, Queen Bee muttered.

She stood there, watching the Helicopter and the Eagle Miraculous disappear into the night. She’d failed her mission.

**1 hour 40 minutes later…**

**Felix watched as Chloe slowly dragged herself to him.**

Her eyes had tears in her eyes when she finally made it to him. She was back in her green dress and her wig hung limply in her hand.

“I failed.”, she whispered. “I let them take the Eagle Miraculous away.”

Felix felt pain stab in his chest.

He had two choices in front of him and he wasn’t sure which one he was supposed to choose. He could either keep the Miraculous from Chloe and give it to the Circle of Clandestine, which would make sure the Eagle Miraculous wasn’t misused or he could give it to Chloe and save her job.

By impulse his hand moved and raised itself before her. She blinked but silently extended her open hand.

It took just a second to open his fingers, but it felt like an eternity playing over again and again. He felt the Miraculous leave his fingers and the leather string brush against his thumb pad before finally settling in Chloe’s hand.

“H-how?”, Chloe looked at him intensely.

“You didn’t give me time to explain, I had already taken it.”, Felix said with a light smile.

Weirdly enough, it felt genuine. He looked at Chloe and felt himself turn younger. He felt himself turn into the child that used to smile all the time. He felt time change. In that one moment he could have kissed Chloe Bourgeois. The sky turned lighter as the sun slowly made its way back into the sky and Felix’s heart quivered in the light of his new dawn.

“I…”, Chloe looked at the Miraculous one more time before tightening her fingers around it. She looked lost and at the same time.

“T-thank you…”, she whispered.

“I didn’t hear you.”, Felix said with a teasing smile.

Chloe looked conflicted and he soaked in the sight of her blushing. The next second, she had her arms around him and her face was buried in his suit.

Before he had the chance to hug her back, she leapt away as though she’d caught fire and spluttered, “I don’t like you. I’m just grateful.” All the while her face was flushed red with embarrassment.

“Don’t fool yourself Chloe. We both know you don’t have a chance with me.”, Felix didn’t find it easy to go back to normal as he should have, but he didn’t mind.

“Hah! As if!”, Chloe said and folded her arms. She brushed her fingers against her ear and said and ‘okay’.

Felix was confused until she looked at him and said, “I have to go now. My Back-up has arrived and turned into my escort instead.”

“Finally.”, Felix said with a smirk, “I thought you’d never leave.”

“I think I’ll stay just to make you suffer.”

 _‘Yes please!’,_ Felix thought to himself.

“But I have to leave.”

“Move along then, I’ll deal with the aftermath.”, Felix said.

Chloe nodded and moved towards the maze. “Robert is close by. Third turn from the right.”

“He’ll be traumatised.”, Felix said with a smug tone.

Chloe didn’t comment as she neared the Maze, “And Felix?”

“Yes?”

“Thank you. For saving me in the well back then.”

Felix held her gaze for a few seconds and it took everything in him to let her leave.

“you’re welcome.”

Chloe sent him her most breath-taking smile and Felix lost all the air in his lungs. As she turned and left he could only follow her with his eyes.

The rising sun caught in her golden hair, making it shine like a rich yellow flame.

Felix was suffering. Not because he couldn’t wreck Chloe’s day, but because he missed her already. The feeling was something totally knew. It was...Selcouth.

* * *

A/N: Happy New Year 

Tan Legend

over and out~

**Author's Note:**

> Next chapter will be up on New Years eve.
> 
> Tan Legend  
> over and out~


End file.
